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From: ethan@utastro.UUCP (Ethan Vishniac)
Newsgroups: net.space
Subject: Re: Voyager, on to Uranus.
Message-ID: <463@utastro.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 1-Aug-85 11:06:38 EDT
Article-I.D.: utastro.463
Posted: Thu Aug  1 11:06:38 1985
Date-Received: Sat, 3-Aug-85 04:17:27 EDT
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Organization: U. Texas, Astronomy, Austin, TX
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> > > 
> > > So again, nine years later, "Where's it going?"
> > 
> > Nowhere.  It is not pointing anywhere near the nearest stars.  By the time
> > it gets very far all the stars will have moved.  We have no idea where it
> > might end up, but odds are that it will never pass close to another
> > planetary system.
> 
> Sorry Ethan, this is not entirely true.  While it is true that there is no
> deliberate target, someone at JPL [sorry, forgot to copy his name down,
> he deserves the credit] calculated the motions of local stars to 100,000
> years.  Both Voyagers will pass to around 1 Light-year (approx) of the
> star AC +79 3888 in about 40,000 years.  AC +79 3888 is currently 17
> light years away and is expected to be about 3 light years away by that time.
> [The velocity is left as an excercise to elementary school students...]. ;-)
> After Neptune encounter of V 2, a decision will be made whether to use the
> remaining manuveuring fuel to improve the current trajectory for a
> closer encounter with AC +79 3888.
> 
> --eugene miya

Hmmmmmm..........................  Anyone out there who thinks one light year
counts as close can call me a liar.
-- 

"Don't argue with a fool.      Ethan Vishniac
 Borrow his money."            {charm,ut-sally,ut-ngp,noao}!utastro!ethan
                               Department of Astronomy
                               University of Texas